


Another Halloween story

by FragileObject



Category: Torchwood
Genre: Family, Humor, Love, M/M, Party
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-24
Updated: 2013-03-24
Packaged: 2017-12-06 09:12:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/733998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FragileObject/pseuds/FragileObject
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Young Harkness-Jones have had a tremendous Halloween party and come home late. Their parents' night has been a little tougher.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Another Halloween story

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Otra historia en Halloween](https://archiveofourown.org/works/733979) by [FragileObject](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FragileObject/pseuds/FragileObject). 



> I apologize as usual for my horrible english. I do.

Gwyneth opened the front door quietly and motioned for his brother to be quiet. It was the first year they could return alone from a Halloween party. Actually, from any kind of party. The Harkness-Jones relied heavily on their children, both in their sense of responsibility and in their ability to defend theirselves against any mishap, but they always attempted to control timings and environments or at least contact them often. The dangers of Cardiff’s nights for two teenagers of sixteen and fourteen were not limited to drugs, fights, pedophiles and thieves. No, there also were the things that came through the rift: weevils, alien technology in wrong hands, kidnapper aliens, flesh-eating aliens and also sex-hungry aliens. Ianto used to suffer silent panic attacks whenever their children asked permission to attend to a party, but he always tried to be reasonable and put himself in the place of his children. Jack was another matter. If he thought that something could threaten his children, he was able to monitor the entire area where they were going to move with all terrestrial or extraterrestrial technology within his reach and even watch them in person from the rooftops if necessary. Ianto did not like these extreme measures, but he could understand his husband. During the early years of their children’s lives, the Harkness-Jones family had had repeated problems with an old enemy of Jack and the Doctor. Although the Doctor had assured them that the Master would not interbreed with their timelines and Jack had been able to overcome all the traumas caused by the psychopathic Time Lord, a subtle fear still persisted. Ianto could not blame Jack for that and, secretly, the zeal of his beloved for their children pleased him. The kids, however, saw it differently. It wasn’t very pleasant to behave like carefree youth and socialize with friends while they glimpsed a fluttering military coat from the corner of their eyes.

But that night was different. When Ianto Jones, the classic Dracula, and Jack Harkness, the classic Captain Jack Harkness, brought their children to a youth Halloween party at eight o’clock, at the same time that Gwyneth-Xena the Warrior Princess put her eyes blank and Kai-Green Arrow preferred playing with his smart phone more than hearing his father’s comments questioning the suction capacity of the plastic fangs of Dracula, the SUV alarm devices connected to the Hub jumped unexpectedly. Immediately, Jack’s cell phone rang. Ianto slid his hand under the coat of his husband, who was driving, to find the device and answered the call. It was Owen, who had lost the raffle and was on duty that night. But, raffle or not, the activity in the rift had reached a peak so high that the doctor had had no choice but to warn all his companions. There would be no “trick or treat” that was worth that night. Torchwood members, without exception, would have to leave their children, their costumes, their families and their parties to deal with the biggest pack of weevils seen in recent years in Cardiff. After all, as Ianto liked to point when it came to events related to the history of his land, that was the night in which the boundaries between worlds became more tenuous. And, what was otherwise the Rift?

With a gesture of disgust, Jack stopped the car in front of the entrance of the party’s venue. The parents association of their kids’ school had rented a fantastic central location that belonged to the city council, and some parents have volunteered along with the school staff for watching the youth overnight. Ianto was going to be a watchman of the youngest children, in order of not to intrude too much to his own children with his presence, and Jack had promised to come and go, do some haunts around just in case some alien decided to wander through the environment at the party, and come back again between rounds for a drink, eat some candy and a dance lost in Ianto’s arms, safe from prying eyes. Though, actually, he didn’t care at all about prying eyes, not in the least. While Count Dracula apologized to his colleague parents for not being able to stay, Jack, more Captain Harkness than ever, coached their children. No alcohol and no nonsenses. Fun, yes, getting into trouble, no. Fleeing from strangers like from the cubilian red plague and communicate to the vigilant volunteers any strange terrestrial presence in the place and to any member of Torchwood available at the phone any alien presence. They, or one of the two, would pick them up at eleven. Okay, at twelve. Better half past eleven. If they could not come, they would call to warn the boys to return home in a taxi. At eleven thirty. That said, Jack and Ianto hugged and kissed their children, twished them a chilling and full of fun party, got into the SUV and parted to hunting weevils.

The party was great, the best of their lives. Xena danced, laughed and captivated most boys and maybe even some girl with her charm, her radiant smile and her way with people. And her curves encased in leather and metal. The young Green Arrow got tired of chocolate, danced a while, ignored two or three girls and ended up arguing with his best friends about superheroes, video games and TV series. When midnight approached, both began to grumble looking their watches. They didn’t want to leave, they were in the best of the party. At half past midnight, both began to worry about their parents. Fifteen minutes later, Gwyneth’s phone rang and Kai pressed his ear against the head of his sister. Ianto apologized for the delay and admonished them to get a taxi at that same moment and come home. They had just arrived after the scariest, difficult and endless weevil hunt of their lives. Owen, Gwen and Toshi, exhausted as themselves, had also gone home. Whole Torchwood were more than exhausted and inoperative until the next day. At least. Of course, they would expect awake for them to take a final hot chocolate. Agreed.

But then Maggie Davies, a Gwyneth class mate, climbed to the table of the sweets, took off her Wonder Woman corset, and turned it over her head a few times before stamp it against the face of a boy dressed as a zombie. Betty Stwart didn’t want to be outdone, went over the table with her eternal rival, took off her Tinkerbell costume in one go and started dancing wearing only her green tights, shaking her blond bun to muss. Amid shouts and laughter of all attendees, a few guys got rid of their pirate, cowboy and several superheroes shirts, showed their asses to the other kids also climbing on the long table, and chaos erupted. Teachers and volunteer parents, shocked, lasted almost an hour to control the youngest, taken by insanity, separate them from the rest so they wouldn’t see so deplorable spectacle, and then capture the shameless and get placate the reigning dementia. Finally, the smallest children were picked up by their parents, the crazed mass of the older was appeased, Wonder Woman, Tinkerbell, a couple of pirates and Freddie Krueger were punished to perform social work until spring, and all the others were forced to clean up the place before leaving. When Gwyneth and Kai went outside, still laughing, it was three in the morning. The history professor of Kai oversaw their rise to a taxi and they finally headed home. The fact that neither Jack or Ianto had called again reassured and worried them at once. The lack of posts was unprecedented, but they knew that the last call was made from home. Perhaps, and both prayed silently that they were, their parents were asleep waiting.

So when Green Arrow and Xena carefully closed the home door behind them, the hero of the hood looked out stealthy the living room, the kitchen and the rooms on the first floor while the warrior princess went up the stairs without noise. She didn’t need to look in the bedroom because she saw the changing light of the TV in the small room adjacent to his parents’ spilling into the dark hallway. Carefully, she looked out from the door and what she saw deeply moved her.

Indeed, his parents had had a dreadful and exhausting night of hunting. Ianto, still in his Dracula costume, was lying face up on the big couch, black and red cloak scattered around. His white shirt and black jacket were stained and torn in places. His right hand hung down to the ground and Gwyneth distinguished scratches, scrapes and small traces of blood in his skin. His head was turned toward the back of the couch and the remains of a small wound, already no more than a red scratch, was shining in his forehead in the light of the mute TV. Between Ianto’s body and the back of the sofa, half inlaid, half resting on the chest and belly of his husband, was Jack. The Captain had removed his boots, which were lying a meter of them, on the carpet, but had not taken off his ubiquitous coat. His face rested on Ianto’s chest, making him snore lightly, his big body was shrunken and tight against his beloved and the legs of both of them were intertwined, overflowing by the end of the couch, the dirty black shoes of Ianto along with the Captain feet, clad in ankle socks. Despite being sound asleep, Jack's left hand clung tightly to Ianto's jacket. There were traces of blood on his cheek, but Gwyneth did not distinguish any injuries. In a few hours, his father had had plenty of time to heal from a small wound. She sighed quietly. The hunt must have been something epic to exhaust Jack to the point of falling asleep that way.

Gwyneth turned to make a gesture to his brother, who was going up the stairs.

—Come and see this, Kai —she whispered with a smile.

Kai frowned becoming an almost exact replica of Ianto.

—Are they there?

—Yes, come and see them.

—If they’re naked, I’ll punch you —the boy said approaching his sister.

—Do not be stupid —she said nudging him in the ribs—. Look at them, they are exhausted.

Kai watched the scene for a few seconds and breathed with relief. For several reasons. The principal: his parents were safe. The secondary: the sermon for arriving three hours late would have to wait at least for now.

—Looks like we have a truce tonight...

Gwyneth smiled.

—Until the morning, when they know about Betty and Maggie exotic dance...

Kai went away to his room pulling the bow, a quiver of arrows and the coat.

—At least we will try to make them laugh describing Tinkerbell and Wonder Woman and verse. And Freddie Krueger’s ugly ass.

Gwyneth suppressed a giggle and looked at her parents again before going to bed. It was almost unbelievable that both, with their size, could fit on the couch. They were virtually embedded into each other. Ianto snored softly, one hand hanging and the other on Jack’s back and the Captain quietly slept like a baby, clinging to him.

She bit her lip, pulled out her smart phone from the leather pouch hanging from her warrior princess armor waist and took a picture of her parents quietly. She wanted a memory of that scene. She didn’t thought the time would come when it was possible that she could forget how much their parents loved each other, but she wanted to keep an image to always remember the emotion that had caused her to see them now. She checked the photo and smiled. Perfect. She would never get rid of it.

—I want a love like this —she whispered tightening the phone against her chest as she walked, tired, to her room.


End file.
